Migrating from alpha

The remote generation alpha included a feature called remote plugin execution, which we now simply refer to as remote plugins. Usage is extremely similar, however there are a few callouts to be aware of.

buf.gen.yaml changes

The buf.gen.yaml configuration file is largely unchanged, except for:

1. name and remote keys to reference plugins changed to just plugin. The plugin key understands both local and remote references. Requires buf CLI version 1.8 or later.
2. Drop the /plugins/ path when referencing remote plugins
3. Remove any revision numbers (the revision is now a separate key and typically not specified.)

Full example covering all changes:

plugins:
-  - remote: buf.build/bufbuild/plugins/connect-go:v1.3.1-1
+  - plugin: buf.build/bufbuild/connect-go:v1.3.1

Public plugins are now solely maintained by the Buf team

In the alpha, public plugins could be uploaded by individual users with no verification. This caused a subpar experience for users who discovered plugins on their own, as well as caused a security headache for some of our customers. All public remote plugins are now maintained and verified by the Buf team directly.

To see all publicly-available plugins, go to buf.build/plugins. We think we've covered the vast majority of use cases, however if you find a useful plugin that should be added, please file an issue!

Private plugins available for enterprise and team customers

The BSR will still allow you to upload your custom, private plugins. This feature is already available for our enterprise users, and we'll be rolling this out to our buf.build users in the coming weeks as a paid feature. Contact us if you are interested in working with us!

Alpha deprecation

We've deprecated the remote generation alpha, but it will continue to work until April 30, 2023, at which time you'll need to migrate to remote plugins or remote packages.